Follow the Rain
by Whispers of Redemption
Summary: After nearly a decade of feeling the way he does, he's finally together with his long-time crush. Will his insecurities, shady past and family's dishonor ruin it? Or will the dragon master, despite his fame, remain with him no matter what? Lance x Silver.
1. Bet

Silver's become a respectable trainer over the years, one that doesn't always play strictly by the rules but doesn't completely break them to the point of them being unrecognizable. He's actually close to becoming a gym leader in Johto. He's still not overly friendly; he can't even remember the name of the leader he's replacing. However, he now has faith in his Pokemon and his ability as their trainer.

Today, he's visiting the Dragon's Den for some training. His Pokemon are always growing stronger, growing stronger just like he is growing in every way possible. The scars his father had left on him are not completely gone, but they are fading more each and every day. He's able to smile sometimes and converse with people he didn't find completely boring. At times, it almost gives him a completely good feeling.

He approaches the Den, and he's almost inside when he notices someone ahead of him. A taller man wearing a familiar cape, a Dragonite faithfully at his side. Upon spotting the man, Silver's breath is stuck in his throat and his heart beats slightly faster.

He wants to pretend that he doesn't know why this happens, but he's not pathetic enough to lie to himself. He knows he's in love, but he also knows it could become a weakness. Nevertheless, Silver follows the man into the Den, trying to keep his thoughts under control (but the ideas of being held and being kissed are too hard to get out of his head and the thoughts of affectionate words being spoken, Lance's _lips on his neck_ and Silver _screaming Lance's name_ prove to be too difficult to just ignore-) He knows he'll talk to the former champion, he _knows_ this because he knows that after all this time, Lance is getting suspicious by the sheer _number_ of times he's been challenged by Silver recently.

He sighs in defeat. At least this time it's unplanned that they're at the Dragon's Den at the same time.

He catches up to the other man, who greets him a slight grin. He momentarily wonders if he should challenge Lance to a battle right off the bat, but he decides against it. After all, Lance is suspicious and Silver just doesn't want Lance to find out.

He doesn't want weakness.

However, he also doesn't want to deal with these feelings anymore. He challenges Lance to a battle, explaining that whoever won got to ask something of the loser. The older man grins with confidence and accepts, and so the battle begins.

As usual, Silver is taken back by how graceful Lance is when he's battling. There's a few times where Silver's gaze lowers to admire the other man's body. He snaps himself out of it quickly every time, and he always mentally curses himself for being so stupid and petty. He reminds himself that when he wins, he'll get all this frustration out in the open once and for all.

However, Silver loses as he always does. He stares at the ground in defeat, wondering what Lance is going to ask of him. He fears for the worst and curses himself for doing so. He feels so idiotic.

Lance's request shocks him, and for a moment he doesn't know what to do. His fists clench and unclench quickly, his thoughts racing. He takes long enough that Lance repeats himself.

Silver nervously walks over to Lance, and their lips meet for the first time.


	2. Mantra

**THIS CHAPTER DEALS WITH A TRIGGERING SUBJECT OF A SEXUAL MANNER, EVEN THOUGH IT DOES NOT GO VERY FAR.**

* * *

For the first three months, Silver and Lance's relationship seems to have no visible problems. The two were even beginning to form plans to move in with each other. This makes Silver nervous, but at the same time, he wants this-he wants so badly to be with Lance. It's something he's wanted badly for almost the last decade.

One day after those three months had passed, Silver gets careless. On his way to Lance's home, he's knocked out from behind. The next thing he remembers, he's tied up at the wrists and ankles in an unknown warehouse.

Silver immediately gets angry, spitting out demands to know just who has kidnapped him. He gets his answer quickly-it's a new team, just like all the teams that have followed since his own father's. This doesn't do anything to cool his rage, in fact, it only makes it worse, and he vocalizes his thoughts of anger.

He tells them that they're weak, that they're cowards, just like all the other teams that preceded them. He smirks when their leader snarls at him and approaches him. Silver assumes it's to hit him, but is surprised when that isn't the intent at all. No, he knows this person. This person was once a grunt in Team Rocket, and a rather detestable one at that-not just as a grunt or a woman, but as a human being.

Silver curses his luck.

The former Rocket grunt gives him a cruel, twisted smile, asking how Giovanni's little dog came to be in this situation. Silver smirks a little more, saying that he should be the one asking that.

Then the physical blow Silver had expected comes, along with duct tape over his mouth. His anger is confined to his mind, his thoughts with nowhere else to go. He struggles against the rope that binds him so much that there's rope burns on his wrists (at the _very least_.)

All he can do is wait-there's nothing else he can do.

He's told that he's bait for "stronger" trainers than he-any region's Gym Leaders and Elite Four. They've heard the stories, they've heard how Silver has almost made it to Gym Leader status. They tell him that he'll never be as "honest" as they are, that he's a Rocket to the end, even if the organization no longer exists-lies and thievery are in his very blood.

Silver makes a low-pitched growl in the back of his throat. He can't speak, he can't yell at them. So his mind begins to degrade him as well. Silver has always wanted to be strong, but has he become stronger in the long run? His low self-esteem becomes his enemy, taunting him worse than the leader and grunts before him ever could. His eyes become shut tightly, trying to block everything out. The members of yet another weak organization, his own thoughts-_everything_.

Those eyes don't stay shut for long-they snap open quickly when he feels a hand on one of his shoulders. He sees the leader and his reopened eyes narrow into a glare, as if asking what the hell she was doing.

His entire body shudders when he gets his answer in the form of a kiss to the neck, lowering hands and words of how Silver has 'grown up so much.' Suddenly, Silver is struggling again, his eyes once again shut.

_Damnit damnit damnit_, his mind turns that word into something akin to a mantra. _Damnit damnit damnit damnit damnit damnit..._

The woman doesn't get too far. She gets a hand under Silver's shirt before becoming acquainted with a hyper beam. She's thrown across the room, hitting the wall and slumping to the ground, unconscious.

Silver's eyes open again once he realizes the unwanted touching is gone. The first thing he sees is an enraged master of Dragon Pokemon, telling the grunts that they better leave as quickly as their disgusting, pathetic legs can take them.

Suddenly, Silver's mind is turning another word into a mantra, this one of relief: _Lance... Lance... Lance!_

His wrists and ankles are quickly relieved of their bounds, strong hands rubbing the areas effected by rope burn. Lance then makes the mistake of asking Silver if it's all right.

The younger man snaps, asking in a scream what took Lance so long before holding onto him tightly. He knows his emotions aren't coming out right-Silver is nothing more and nothing less than relieved that someone saved him, and that it was Lance on top of it.

Even with that as a fact, Silver nonetheless feels weak.

Lance holds Silver's trembling form tightly, muttering a mantra of apologies.


End file.
